Focus ring heating method, plasma etching apparatus, and plasma etching method

ABSTRACT

There are provided a method of heating a focus ring and a plasma etching apparatus, capable of simplifying a structure of a heating mechanism without a dummy substrate. The plasma etching apparatus includes a vacuum processing chamber; a lower electrode serving as a mounting table for mounting a substrate thereon; an upper electrode provided to face the lower electrode; a gas supply unit for supplying a processing gas; a high frequency power supply for supplying a high frequency power to the lower electrode to generate a plasma of the processing gas; and a focus ring provided on the lower electrode to surround a periphery of the substrate. In the plasma etching apparatus, the focus ring is heated by irradiating a heating light thereto from a light source provided outside the vacuum processing chamber.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a method for heating a focus ringprovided in a plasma etching apparatus that etches a substrate such as asemiconductor wafer, a glass substrate for a liquid crystal displayapparatus, and the like by using a plasma; a plasma etching apparatus;and a plasma etching method.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In general, a plasma etching apparatus for etching a substrate such as asemiconductor wafer and a glass substrate for a liquid crystal displayapparatus by using a plasma has been employed in a manufacturing processof semiconductor devices, or the like.

The plasma etching apparatus is typically configured to include, e.g., avacuum processing chamber; a lower electrode provided in the processingchamber, the lower electrode also serving as a mounting table on which asubstrate is mounted; and an upper electrode provided to face the lowerelectrode. A high frequency power is supplied to the lower electrode togenerate a plasma of a processing gas. Further, the plasma etchingapparatus includes a focus ring provided on the lower electrode tosurround a periphery of the substrate in order to improve an in-planeuniformity of processing on the substrate.

Moreover, an inductive heating unit is provided inside the focus ringand the focus ring is inductively heated by a magnetic field generatedby an induction coil placed in the vacuum processing chamber (see, e.g.,Patent document 1).

[Patent document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No.2008-159931

In the plasma etching apparatus, when a plurality of substrates issuccessively subjected to the plasma etching, the temperature of thefocus ring is gradually increased from a room temperature as the focusring is exposed to the plasma. For that reason, without dealing withsuch change of temperature, a first substrate firstly subjected to theplasma etching has a processed state different from those of a secondand following substrates subjected to the plasma etching. To prevent theoccurrence of such a problem, a plasma is conventionally generated inthe vacuum processing chamber while a dummy substrate is mounted on thelower electrode and the focus ring is heated by the plasma, before thestart of the processing of substrates.

If a plasma is generated in the vacuum processing chamber while no dummysubstrate is mounted, the surface of an electrostatic chuck may bedamaged by the plasma, the electrostatic chuck being provided on thelower electrode to electrostatically attract the substrate. Accordingly,as described above, the plasma is generated in the vacuum processingchamber while the dummy substrate is mounted on the lower electrode.

However, if the plasma is generated in the vacuum processing chamber toheat the focus ring by the plasma as described above, the focus ring andother members included in the vacuum processing chamber may be worn out.Further, if the focus ring is heated in this way, it becomes necessaryto manage a frequency of using the dummy substrate or the like andprovide an accommodation part (slot) for accommodating the dummysubstrate.

Moreover, when the inductive heating unit is provided inside the focusring and the focus ring is inductively heated by the magnetic fieldgenerated by the induction coil placed in the vacuum processing chamber,it is needed to provide, in advance, the inductive heating unit in thefocus ring and the induction coil in the vacuum processing chamber.Accordingly, the heating mechanism for heating the focus ring has acomplex structure, thereby increasing a manufacturing cost.

In the meantime, a processing shape at a peripheral portion of aprocessing-target substrate, e.g., a semiconductor wafer, may becomedifferent from those of other portions in the plasma etching apparatus.For example, when a hole is formed on a semiconductor wafer by a plasmaetching, a processing shape at a peripheral portion of the semiconductorwafer may become thinner, thereby causing a diameter of the hole to bedecreased. In this case, it is possible to improve the processing shapeat the peripheral portion of the semiconductor wafer by cooling a focusring. However, if the focus ring is cooled, an etching rate of aphotoresist may be increased at the peripheral portion of thesemiconductor wafer and a corresponding selectivity may be lowered.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above, the present invention provides a focus ringheating method and a plasma etching apparatus, in which members inside avacuum chamber can be suppressed from being worn out without a dummysubstrate and a structure of a heating mechanism can be simplified tosuppress the increase in a manufacturing cost as compared with aconventional method.

The present invention also provides a plasma etching apparatus and aplasma etching method, which can suppress the deterioration of aprocessing shape at a peripheral portion of a processing-targetsubstrate and improve an in-plane uniformity of a plasma etching processby suppressing the increase in an etching rate of a photoresist at theperipheral portion of the processing-target substrate.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, there isprovided a method of heating a focus ring in a plasma etching apparatus.The plasma etching apparatus includes a vacuum processing chamber; amounting table for mounting a substrate thereon, the mounting tablebeing provided in the vacuum processing chamber; a gas supply unit forsupplying a processing gas to the vacuum processing chamber; and thefocus ring provided to surround a periphery of the substrate. The methodincludes: heating the focus ring by irradiating a heating light from alight source provided outside the vacuum processing chamber to the focusring through an insulating member provided below the focus ring.

In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, there isprovided a plasma etching apparatus including a vacuum processingchamber; a mounting table for mounting a substrate thereon, the mountingtable being provided in the vacuum processing chamber; a gas supply unitfor supplying a processing gas to the vacuum processing chamber; a focusring provided to surround a periphery of the substrate; a light sourceprovided outside the vacuum processing chamber to irradiate a heatinglight for heating the focus ring; and an insulating member providedbelow the focus ring. The focus ring is heated by the heating lighttransmitted from the light source to the focus ring through theinsulating member.

In accordance with still another embodiment of the present invention,there is provided a plasma etching apparatus including a vacuumprocessing chamber; a mounting table for mounting a substrate thereon,the mounting table being provided in the vacuum processing chamber; agas supply unit for supplying a processing gas to the vacuum processingchamber; a unit for converting the processing gas to a plasma; a focusring provided to surround a periphery of the substrate; an annularmember provided to surround a periphery of the focus ring; a coolingunit for cooling the focus ring; and a heating mechanism for heating theannular member by irradiating a heating light from a light sourcethereto.

In accordance with still another embodiment of the present invention,there is provided a method of performing a plasma etching on a substrateby using a plasma etching apparatus including a vacuum processingchamber; a mounting table for mounting the substrate thereon, themounting table being provided in the vacuum processing chamber; a gassupply unit for supplying a processing gas to the vacuum processingchamber; a unit for converting the processing gas to a plasma; a focusring provided to surround a periphery of the substrate; and an annularmember provided to surround a periphery of the focus ring. The methodincludes providing a heating mechanism for heating the annular member byirradiating a heating light from a light source thereto; and performingthe plasma etching on the substrate while heating the annular member bythe heating mechanism and cooling the focus ring.

In accordance with the embodiments of the present invention, it ispossible to provide a focus ring heating method and a plasma etchingapparatus, in which members inside the vacuum chamber can be suppressedfrom being worn out without a dummy substrate and a structure of theheating mechanism can be simplified to suppress the increase of amanufacturing cost as compared with a conventional method.

In accordance with the embodiments of the present invention, it is alsopossible to provide a plasma etching apparatus and a plasma etchingmethod, which can suppress the deterioration of a processing shape at aperipheral portion of a processing-target substrate and improve anin-plane uniformity of a plasma etching process by suppressing theincrease in an etching rate of a photoresist at the peripheral portionof the processing-target substrate.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The objects and features of the present invention will become apparentfrom the following description of embodiments, given in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a structure of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 2A and 2B are partially enlarged views showing main parts of theplasma etching apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordance withanother embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordance withstill another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 shows how a heating light is propagated;

FIG. 6 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordance withstill another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordance withstill another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordance withstill another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordance withstill another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 11A to 11A show main parts of a plasma etching apparatus inaccordance with still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 12A to 12C show main parts of a plasma etching apparatus inaccordance with still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 shows a structure of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 14 partially shows main parts of the plasma etching apparatus shownin FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 partially shows main parts of the plasma etching apparatus shownin FIG. 13;

FIG. 16 shows how a heating light is propagated;

FIG. 17 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 18 partially shows main parts of the plasma etching apparatus shownin FIG. 17;

FIG. 19 partially shows main parts of the plasma etching apparatus shownin FIG. 17;

FIG. 20 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 21 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 22 shows how a heating light is propagated;

FIG. 23 shows how a heating light is propagated;

FIG. 24 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 25 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 26A to 26C show main parts of a plasma etching apparatus inaccordance with still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 27A to 27C show main parts of a plasma etching apparatus inaccordance with still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 28 is a graph showing a relationship between a supplied energy anda normal temperature;

FIG. 29 is a graph showing a relationship between a supplied energy anda temperature-increasing rate;

FIG. 30 is a graph showing a relationship between a heating time by eachsupplied energy and a temperature;

FIG. 31 is a graph showing a relationship between a heating time by eachsupplied energy and a temperature;

FIG. 32 is a graph showing a temperature difference according to whetheror not a reflection unit exists;

FIG. 33 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 34 is a graph showing a temperature difference according to whetheror not a reflection mirror exists;

FIG. 35 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 36 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 37 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 38 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 39 shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus in accordancewith still another embodiment of the present invention; and

FIGS. 40A and 40B shows main parts of a plasma etching apparatus inaccordance with still another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described withreference to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof. FIG. 1is a cross sectional view schematically showing a structure of a plasmaetching apparatus 1 in accordance with a first embodiment of the presentinvention. First, the structure of the plasma etching apparatus 1 willbe described with reference to FIG. 1.

The plasma etching apparatus 1 is a capacitively coupled parallel platetype etching apparatus in which electrode plates are respectivelyarranged at an upper and a lower portion to face each other in paralleland connected to a plasma generating power supply.

The plasma etching apparatus 1 includes a cylindrical vacuum processingchamber 2 made of, e.g., aluminum whose surface is anodically oxidized.The vacuum processing chamber 2 is grounded. At a bottom portion in thevacuum processing chamber 2, a substantially cylindrical susceptorsupport 4 for mounting thereon a target substrate, e.g., a semiconductorwafer W is provided via an insulating base 3 made of, e.g., a ceramic orthe like. Further, a susceptor (mounting table) 5 serving as a lowerelectrode is provided on the susceptor support 4. A high pass filter(HPF) 6 is connected to the susceptor 5.

A coolant path 7 is provided inside the susceptor support 4. A coolantis supplied via a coolant introducing pipe 8 to be circulated in thecoolant path 7 and exhausted from a coolant exhaust pipe 9 and a coldheat of the coolant is transferred to the semiconductor wafer W via thesusceptor 5. In this way, the temperature of the semiconductor wafer Wis controlled to a desired level.

The susceptor 5 is formed into a circular plate shape having a protrudedupper central portion. Provided on the susceptor 5 is an electrostaticchuck 11 having a substantially same shape as the semiconductor wafer W.The electrostatic chuck 11 includes therein an electrode 12 interposedbetween insulating members 10. By applying a DC voltage of, e.g., about1.5 kV from a DC power supply 13 connected to the electrode 12, thesemiconductor wafer W is attracted to and held on the electrostaticchuck 11 by, e.g., a Coulomb force.

A gas channel 14, through which a heat transfer medium (e.g., He gas) issupplied to a backside of the semiconductor wafer W, is formed in thesusceptor support 4, the susceptor 5, and the electrostatic chuck 11.Accordingly, a cold heat of the susceptor 5 is transferred to thesemiconductor wafer W by the heat transfer medium, to thereby maintainthe temperature of the semiconductor wafer W at a predetermined level.

A ring-shaped focus ring 15 is arranged on an upper peripheral portionof the susceptor 5 to surround the semiconductor wafer W mounted on theelectrostatic chuck 11. The focus ring 15 is made of, e.g., silicon orthe like, to thereby improve an in-plane uniformity of etching.

A ring-shaped insulating member, e.g., a ring-shaped quartz member 72made of quartz in the present embodiment, is provided below the focusring 15 to surround the susceptor 5 and the susceptor support 4.

Moreover, a light source 70 is provided at a predetermined portion(atmospheric pressure portion) outside the vacuum processing chamber 2.For example, the light source 70 is provided at a portion under thevacuum processing chamber 2 in the present embodiment. The focus ring 15is heated by supplying a heating light 71 from the light source 70 tothe focus ring 15 through the inside of the ring-shaped quartz member72. Such a heating mechanism for heating the focus ring 15 will bedescribed later in detail.

Alternatively, the ring-shaped insulating member may be made of amaterial other than quartz, which allows the heating light 71 to passtherethrough, e.g., fused quartz, sapphire, transparent yttria, or anoptical material formed of any one of Ge, ZnSe, ZnS, GaAs, CaF₂, BaF₂,MgF₂, LiF, KBr, KCl, NaCl, and MgO. Further, although the insulatingmember of the present embodiment has such a ring-shape, the insulatingmember may have a different shape, e.g., a fan-shape or a cylindricalshape to be described later.

An upper electrode 21 is provided above the susceptor 5 to face thesusceptor 5 in parallel. The upper electrode is held at an upper portionof the vacuum processing chamber 2 through an insulating member 22. Theupper electrode 21 includes an electrode plate 24, and an electrodeholder 25 made of, e.g., a conductive material for holding the electrodeplate 24. The electrode plate 24 is made of, e.g., a conductor or asemiconductor and has a plurality of injection holes 12. The electrodeplate 24 faces the susceptor 5.

In the upper electrode 21, a gas inlet port 26 is provided at a centralportion of the electrode holder 25 and a gas supply pipe 27 is connectedto the gas inlet port 26. A processing gas supply source 30 is connectedto the gas supply pipe 27 via a valve 28 and a mass flow controller(MFC) 29. A processing gas for plasma etching is supplied from theprocessing gas supply source 30.

An exhaust pipe 31 is connected to a bottom portion of the vacuumprocessing chamber 2 and an exhaust device 35 is connected to theexhaust pipe 31. The exhaust device 35 includes a vacuum pump such as aturbo molecular pump or the like to exhaust the inside of the chamber 2to be depressurized to a vacuum level, e.g., about 1 Pa or less.Moreover, a gate valve 32 is provided in a sidewall of the vacuumprocessing chamber 2. While the gate valve 32 is opened, thesemiconductor wafer W is transferred between the vacuum processingchamber 2 and an adjacent load-lock chamber (not shown).

A first high frequency power supply 40 is connected to the upperelectrode 21 via a matching unit 41 by using a power supply wire.Moreover, a low pass filter (LPF) 42 is connected to the upper electrode21. A high frequency power of, e.g., about 50 to 150 MHz is suppliedfrom the first high frequency power supply 40. As such, by supplying ahigh frequency power of a relatively high frequency, it is possible togenerate a high density plasma in a desired dissociation state.

A second high frequency power supply 50 is connected to the susceptor 5serving as the lower electrode via a matching unit 51 by using a powersupply wire. A second high frequency power supplied from the second highfrequency power supply 50 is lower than that supplied from the firsthigh frequency power supply 40. By supplying the high frequency powerof, e.g., about 20 MHz or less from the second high frequency powersupply 50, it is possible to apply an adequate ion action to thesemiconductor wafer W as the processing-target substrate withoutdamaging it.

An operation of the plasma etching apparatus 1 is generally controlledby a control unit 60. The control unit 60 includes a process controllerhaving a central processing unit (CPU) to control various components ofthe plasma etching apparatus 1; a user interface 62; and a storage unit63.

The user interface 62 includes a keyboard through which an operatorinputs a command or the like to operate or manage the plasma etchingapparatus 1, a display unit through which an operation status of theplasma etching apparatus 1 is visually displayed, and the like.

The storage unit 63 stores control programs (software) for performingvarious processes of the plasma etching apparatus 1 under the control ofthe process controller 61; and recipes having processing condition dataand the like. As necessary, a desired process of the plasma etchingapparatus is performed under the control of the process controller 61 byreading from the storage unit 63 a recipe corresponding to a command orthe like inputted through the user interface 62 to be executed by theprocess controller 61.

The control program and the recipes having processing condition data andthe like may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Thestorage medium and the recipes may be, e.g., a hard disk, a CD, aflexible disk, a semiconductor memory, or the like. Alternatively, thecontrol program and the recipes may be adequately transmitted on-linefrom another apparatus through, e.g., a dedicated line.

When the plasma etching is performed on the semiconductor wafer W in theplasma etching apparatus 1, the gate valve 32 is first opened and thesemiconductor wafer W is loaded from a load-lock chamber (not shown)into the vacuum processing chamber 2 to be mounted on the electrostaticchuck 11. Then, by applying a DC voltage from the DC power supply 13,the semiconductor wafer W is attracted to and held on the electrostaticchuck 11. Successively, the gate valve 32 is closed and the vacuumprocessing chamber 2 is exhausted to a preset vacuum level by theexhaust device 35.

Thereafter, the valve 28 is opened and a processing gas is supplied fromthe processing gas supply source 30 to a hollow portion of the upperelectrode 21 via the gas supply pipe 27 and the gas inlet port 26, whilethe flow rate of the processing gas is being adjusted by the mass flowcontroller 29. Then, the processing gas is injected through theinjection holes 23 of the electrode plate 24 uniformly over thesemiconductor wafer W as pointed by arrows illustrated in FIG. 1.

The pressure inside the vacuum processing chamber 2 is maintained at apreset level. Then, by supplying a high frequency power of a presetfrequency from the first high frequency power supply 40 to the upperelectrode 21, a high frequency electric field is generated between theupper electrode 21 and the susceptor 5 serving as the lower electrode,so that the processing gas is decomposed to be converted to a plasma.

In the meantime, a high frequency power having a lower frequency thanthat of the high frequency power supplied from the first high frequencypower 40 is supplied from the second high frequency power 50 to thesusceptor 5 serving as the lower electrode. Accordingly, the ions in theplasma are attracted to the susceptor 5, to thereby improve an etchinganisotropy by ion assist.

Next, if the plasma etching process is completed, the supplies of thehigh frequency power and the processing gas are stopped and thesemiconductor wafer W is unloaded from the vacuum processing chamber 2in reverse order.

FIG. 2A is an enlarged cross sectional view showing the focus ring 15 ofthe plasma etching apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1 and components forheating the focus ring 15, and FIG. 2B three-dimensionally shows a partof the ring-shaped quartz member 72. As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, thefocus ring 15 is mounted on the ring-shaped quartz member 72 and thesusceptor 5 serving as a lower electrode to surround a periphery of thesemiconductor wafer W. The ring-shaped quartz member 72 surrounds aperiphery of the susceptor (lower electrode) 5 to insulate the susceptor5 from therearound.

Formed in the base 3 is an optical path 3 a through which the heatinglight 71 from the light source 70 travels. A window 3 b for airtightsealing is provided at an end portion of an outlet side (left side inFIG. 2A) of the optical path 3 a. The heating light 71 from the lightsource 70 is reflected at about 90° by a mirror or prism 73 providednear an inlet of the optical path 3 a to be introduced in the opticalpath 3 a. The reference numeral “3 c” denotes an O-ring for airtightlysealing the window 3 b in FIG. 2.

As shown in FIG. 2B, a light introducing part 72 a is provided at aportion of the ring-shaped quartz member 72 to correspond to the window3 b. The ring-shaped quartz member 72A includes a reflection portion 72b provided inwards of the light introducing portion 72 a, so that theheating light introduced through the light introducing part 72 a isupwardly reflected by the reflection portion 72 b. Then, the heatinglight 71 travels to the focus ring 15.

A reflection film 72 c is provided on an inner surface, an outersurface, and a bottom surface of the ring-shaped quartz member 72 exceptfor the light introducing part 72 a. The reflection film 72 c serves tosuppress the heating light introduced in the ring-shaped quartz member72 through the light introducing part 72 a from leaking from the innersurface, the outer surface, or the bottom surface to the outside.

As shown in FIG. 5, by the reflection film 72 c, the heating light 71introduced in the ring-shaped quartz member is diffusely reflected anddivided in the ring-shaped quartz member 72 to be scanned, thereby beingdispersed and transferred to every area of the focus ring 15 touniformly efficiently heat the focus ring 15.

The reflection film 72 c can be formed by using a metal film or adielectric film. Alternatively, instead of forming the reflection film72 c, a surface of the ring-shaped quartz member 72 may be madetransparent or subjected to a fire-polish process, in order to enablethe heating light 71 traveling in the ring-shaped quartz member 72 to beeasily reflected.

As the light source 70, it is preferable to employ a laser beam sourcegenerating a laser beam or a light emitting diode (LED) light sourcehaving LEDs. Moreover, in the present embodiment, it is preferable touse a beam of light that does not penetrate through the focus ring 15(silicon material) as the heating light 71 irradiated from the lightsource 70. In this case, the heating light 71 irradiated from the lightsource 70 preferably has a wavelength that is equal to or smaller than afundamental absorption edge of silicon (a wavelength of 1050 nm orless). In this way, the focus ring 15 can be efficiently heated. As theheating light 71, any one of ultraviolet, visible, and infrared beamsmay be employed.

Meanwhile, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, a ring-shaped cover ring 15 a isprovided at a peripheral portion of the focus ring 15. The cover ring 15a may be heated in the same way as that of the focus ring 15.

As for a structure for introducing the heating light 71 into thering-shaped quartz member 72, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, the lightsource 70 having a plurality of LEDs may be provided below the quartzmember 72, to directly introduce the heating light 71 from the lightsource 70 into the quartz member 72 through the window 3 b.Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 4, the heating light 71 may beintroduced from the light source 70 into a plurality of optical fibers75 while leading ends of the optical fibers 75 are arranged below thequartz member 72, to introduce the heating light 71 from the opticalfibers 75 into the lower portion of the quartz member 72 through thewindow 3 b.

As shown in FIG. 6, a diffusion unit 72 d having a diffraction gratingmay be provided in the light introducing part 72 a and a light outputpart to dividedly disperse the heating light 71 introduced in thering-shaped quartz member 72 into a −1^(st), a 0^(th), a +1^(st) orderlight, and the like. In this case, the dispersion state (diffractionangle) may be changed by adjusting the wavelength of the heating light71 irradiated from the light source 70, thereby more uniformlydispersing the light 71 and uniformly heating the focus ring 15.

Instead of forming the reflection film 72 c in the ring-shaped quartzmember 72, the inner surface, the outer surface, and the bottom surfaceof the ring-shaped quartz member 72 may be polished into a mirrorsurface. In this case, the heating light 71 is introduced into thering-shaped quartz member 72 under an incident condition (incidentangle) that the heating light 71 is totally reflected on the innersurface of the ring-shaped quartz member 72 as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8.

Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 9, a plurality of beam splitters 72 emay be provided inside the ring-shaped quartz member 72 to disperselittle by little the introduced heating light 71 in a circumferentialdirection such that the dispersed heating light 71 travels upwardly(toward the focus ring 15). Further alternatively, as shown in FIG. 10,the heating light 71 irradiated from the light source 70 may bedispersed by the optical fibers 75 to be introduced through a pluralityof locations into the ring-shaped quartz member 72.

In the present embodiment, the heating light 71 dispersed from thering-shaped quartz member 72 is supplied to the focus ring 15. However,the heating light 71 may be propagated and totally reflected inside thefocus ring 15 as shown in FIGS. 11A to 12C for example. In this case, itis necessary to use a light having a wavelength that is longer than thefundamental absorption edge of silicon (1050 nm) as the heating light 71such that the heating light 71 is propagated inside the focus ring 15.

As shown in FIGS. 11A to 11C, a ring-shaped prism 76 made of a siliconmaterial is provided between the ring-shaped quartz member 72 and thefocus ring 15. FIG. 11A is a cross sectional view showing main parts ofthe plasma etching apparatus 1. FIG. 11B is a cross sectional viewshowing the prism 76. FIG. 11C is a plan view showing the focus ring 15and the prism 76.

As shown in FIG. 11B, an angle between an incident surface and ahorizontal surface of the prism 76 is greater than 25.4° and, thus, theheating light 71 introduced in the focus ring 15 through the prism 76 ispropagated while being totally reflected inside the focus ring 15 in acircumferential direction thereof. The angle of 25.4° is obtained bysetting refractive indexes of silicon and quartz as 3.5 and 1.5,respectively.

As shown in FIGS. 12A to 12C, a rectangular prism 77 made of a siliconmaterial is provided between the ring-shaped quartz member 72 and thefocus ring 15. FIG. 12A is a cross sectional view showing main parts ofthe plasma etching apparatus 1. FIG. 12B is a cross sectional viewshowing the prism 77 taken along a dotted line A-A shown in FIG. 12A.FIG. 12C is a plan view showing the focus ring 15 and the prism 77.

By the prism 77, the heating light 71 is refracted in a circumferentialdirection of the focus ring 15. In the cross section of the prism 77taken along the dotted line A-A, an angle between an incident surfaceand a horizontal surface thereof is greater than 25.4°. Accordingly, theheating light 71 introduced in the focus ring 15 through the prism 77 ispropagated while being totally reflected in the circumferentialdirection inside the focus ring 15. As described above, the angle of25.4° is obtained by setting refractive indexes of silicon and quartz as3.5 and 1.5, respectively.

Instead of providing the prism 76 or 77, a process for changing anoptical path may be performed on the surface of at least one of thering-shaped quartz member 72 and the focus ring 15 to serve as a prism.

In the case that the plasma etching apparatus 1 performs the plasmaetching on the semiconductor wafer W, when a plasma is generated insidethe vacuum processing chamber 2, the focus ring 15 is exposed to theplasma. For that reason, as the plasma etching is performed on thesemiconductor wafer W, the focus ring 15 having a room temperature atfirst is heated by the plasma to a high temperature.

Moreover, when a plurality of semiconductor wafers is successivelysubjected to the plasma etching, the focus ring has the room temperaturebefore the plasma etching process is performed on the firstsemiconductor wafer W. However, the focus ring 15 is heated as theplasma etching process is performed on the first semiconductor wafer W,thereby gradually increasing the temperature of the focus ring 15.

After the plasma etching process of the first semiconductor wafer W iscompleted, the first semiconductor wafer W is unloaded from the vacuumprocessing chamber 2. The focus ring 15 is cooled to some extent untilthe second semiconductor w is loaded in the vacuum processing chamber 2and subjected to the plasma etching process.

Thereafter, the focus ring 15 is heated again as the plasma etchingprocess is started to be performed on the second semiconductor wafer W.As the focus ring 15 is repeatedly heated and cooled, the temperature ofthe focus ring 15 has a constant range.

As described above, the temperature of the focus ring 15 is changeddepending on the start of the plasma etching process. Accordingly,especially, a processed state of the first semiconductor wafer W maybecome different from those of the second and following semiconductorwafers W subjected to the plasma etching due to the difference in thetemperature of the focus ring 15 without dealing with such change oftemperature.

For that reason, a plasma is conventionally generated in the vacuumprocessing chamber 2 while a dummy wafer is mounted on the susceptor 5and the focus ring 15 is heated by the plasma before the processing ofthe semiconductor wafer W is started. If a plasma is generated in thevacuum processing chamber 2 while no dummy wafer is mounted on thesusceptor 5, the surface of the electrostatic chuck 11 provided on thesusceptor 5 may be damaged by the plasma. Accordingly, the dummy waferis used in the conventional method.

However, if the focus ring 15 is heated in this way, the focus ring 15and other members included in the vacuum processing chamber 2 areexposed to the plasma, thereby being worn out. Further, if the focusring 15 is heated as described above, it becomes necessary to manage afrequency of using the dummy wafer or the like and provide anaccommodation part (slot) for accommodating the dummy wafer.

In the present embodiment, for example, before the processing of thefirst semiconductor wafer W is started, the heating light 71 isirradiated from the light source 70 to the focus ring 15 through thering-shaped quartz member 72, to thereby heat the focus ring 15. Afterthe focus ring is heated in this way, the processing on semiconductorwafer W is started.

As described above, in accordance with the present embodiment, it is notnecessary to employ the dummy wafer since the focus ring 15 is heatedunder the condition that no plasma is generated. Further, when the focusring 15 is heated, the focus ring 15 and other members included in thevacuum processing chamber 2 are not worn out due to no exposure toplasma. Here, the focus ring 15 may be heated regardless of whether ornot a semiconductor wafer W is mounted on the susceptor 5.

In addition, for example, when a little heat is transferred from theplasma and it is necessary to increase the temperature of the focus ring15 during the plasma etching, the focus ring 15 may be heated byirradiating the heating light 71 thereto during the plasma etching.

Further, since the temperature of the focus ring 15 during the plasmaetching is changed depending on the plasma etching time, it is possibleto control the temperature of the focus ring 15 to be uniform byirradiating the heating light 71 to heat the focus ring 15 whilemeasuring the temperature of the focus ring 15 with a thermometer. Inthis case, the temperature of the focus ring 15 may be measured by thetemperature measuring technique using a low coherence interferometer.Here, a light irradiated from the light source 70 may be also used fortemperature measurement.

As such, since the focus ring 15 is heated in advance without a dummywafer in the present embodiment, it is possible to simplify the plasmaetching process as compared with the conventional method. Further, sincethe focus ring 15 is heated without a plasma, it is possible to preventthe focus ring 15 and other components from being worn out by theplasma. In addition, since the temperature of the focus ring 15 isincreased to a desired value in advance, it is possible to uniformlyperform the plasma etching process on each semiconductor wafer W.

Moreover, in the present embodiment, the heating light 71 is irradiatedfrom the light source 70 provided outerside of the vacuum processingchamber 2 to the focus ring 15 through the ring-shaped quartz member 72provided below the focus ring 15. Accordingly, it is possible tosimplify the structure of the heating mechanism, thereby suppressing theincrease of the manufacturing cost as compared with the case ofrequiring an inductive heating unit inside the focus ring and aninduction coil inside the vacuum processing chamber 2, for example.

FIG. 13 is a cross sectional view schematically showing a structure of aplasma etching apparatus 1 a in accordance with a second embodiment ofthe present invention.

The plasma etching apparatus 1 a is a capacitively coupled parallelplate type etching apparatus in which electrode plates are respectivelyarranged at an upper and a lower portion to face each other in paralleland connected to a plasma generating power supply. Same referencenumerals are given to components corresponding to those of the plasmaetching apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1 and the redundant descriptionthereof will be omitted herein.

In the plasma etching apparatus 1 a of the present embodiment, thering-shaped focus ring 15 is arranged on an upper peripheral portion ofthe susceptor 5 to surround the semiconductor wafer W mounted on theelectrostatic chuck 11. The focus ring 15 is made of, e.g., silicon, SiCor the like and serves to improve an in-plane uniformity of etching.

An annular member (cover ring) 16 is provided at a peripheral portion ofthe focus ring 15 to surround a periphery of the focus ring 15. Theannular member 16 is partially or entirely made of, e.g., silicon, SiCor the like.

As shown in FIG. 14, a ring-shaped insulating member, e.g., aring-shaped quartz member 720 made of quartz in the present embodiment,is provided below the annular member 16 to surround the susceptor 5 andthe susceptor support 4. Alternatively, the ring-shaped quartz member720 may be made of a material other than quartz, which allows theheating light 71 to pass therethrough, e.g., fused quartz, sapphire,transparent yttria, or an optical material formed of one of Ge, ZnSe,ZnS, GaAs, CaF₂, BaF₂, MgF₂, LiF, KBr, KCl. NaCl, and MgO. Further, thequartz member 720 may have a different shape other than the ring shape,e.g., a fan-shape or a cylindrical shape to be described later.

The light source 70 for the heating is provided at a predeterminedportion (atmospheric pressure portion) outside the vacuum processingchamber 2 (under the vacuum processing chamber 2 in the presentembodiment). The annular member 16 is heated by supplying the heatinglight 71 from the light source 70 to the annular member 16 through thering-shaped quartz member 720.

FIG. 14 is an enlarged cross sectional view showing the annular member16 of the plasma etching apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 13 and components forheating the annular member 16. As shown in FIG. 14, the focus ring 15 ismounted on the susceptor 5 serving as a lower electrode to surround aperiphery of the semiconductor wafer W. The annular member 16 isprovided, to surround a periphery of the focus ring 15, on thering-shaped quartz member 72 that is provided to surround the susceptor5 and the susceptor support 4. The ring-shaped quartz member 72surrounds a periphery of the susceptor (lower electrode) 5 to insulatethe susceptor 5 from therearound.

Formed in the base 3 is the optical path 3 a through which the heatinglight 71 from the light source 70 travels. The window 3 b for airtightsealing is provided at an end portion of an outlet side (left side inFIG. 14) of the optical path 3 a. The heating light 71 irradiated fromthe light source 70 is reflected at about 90° by the mirror or prism 73provided near an inlet of the optical path 3 a to be introduced in theoptical path 3 a. The reference numeral “3 c” denotes an O-ring forairtightly sealing the window 3 b in FIG. 14.

The light introducing part 72 a is provided at a portion of thering-shaped quartz member 720 to correspond to the window 3 b. Thering-shaped quartz member 720 includes the reflection portion 72 bprovided inwards of the light introducing portion 72 a, so that theheating light 71 introduced through the light introducing part 72 a isupwardly reflected by the reflection portion 72 b. Then, the heatinglight 71 travels to the annular member 16.

As shown in FIG. 15, the reflection film 72 c serving a reflection unitis provided on an inner surface, an outer surface, and a bottom surfaceof the ring-shaped quartz member 720 except for the light introducingpart 72 a. The reflection film 72 c serves to suppress the heating light71 introduced in the ring-shaped quartz member 720 through the lightintroducing part 72 a from leaking from the inner surface, the outersurface, or the bottom surface to the outside.

As shown in FIG. 16, by the reflection film 72 c, the heating light 71introduced in the ring-shaped quartz member 720 is diffusely reflectedand divided in the ring-shaped quartz member 720 to be scanned, therebybeing dispersed and transferred to every area of the annular member 16to uniformly efficiently heat the annular member 16. The reflection film72 c can be formed by using a metal film or a dielectric film.

As the light source 70 for the heating, it is preferable to employ alaser beam source generating a laser beam or a light emitting diode(LED) light source having LEDs. Moreover, in the present embodiment, itis preferable to use a light that does not pass through the annularmember 16 (silicon material) as the heating light 71 irradiated from thelight source 70. In this case, the heating light irradiated from thelight source 70 preferably has a wavelength that is equal to or smallerthan a fundamental absorption edge of silicon (a wavelength of 1050 nmor less). In this way, the annular member 16 can be efficiently heated.As the heating light 71, any one of ultraviolet, visible, and infraredbeams may be employed.

Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 14, the focus ring 15 is provided at theinner side of the annular member 16 and, also, on the susceptor 5through a heat transfer sheet 15 a. The susceptor 5, as described above,is cooled by a coolant to cool the semiconductor wafer W. Accordingly,the focus ring 15 is cooled by a cold heat transferred from thesusceptor 5. In the present embodiment, the temperature of the focusring 15 is maintained to be lower than 200° C. when a plasma etching isperformed on a film formed on the semiconductor wafer W by using aplasma generated in the processing chamber 2.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the plasma etching isperformed while the annual member (cover ring) 16 is heated byirradiating the heating light 71 from the light source 70 thereto suchthat the temperature of the annual member 16 is maintained to be equalto or higher than 200° C. (e.g., 300 to 500° C.) and the focus ring 15is cooled such that the temperature of the focus ring 15 is maintainedto be lower than 200° C. Accordingly, it is possible to suppress boththe deterioration of a processing shape, such as the decrease indiameter of a hole at the peripheral portion of the semiconductor waferW and the increase in etching rate of a photoresist at the peripheralportion of the semiconductor wafer W. As a result, the selectivity canbe suppressed from being lowered, thereby improving the in-planeuniformity of the plasma etching process.

For example, a structure shown in FIGS. 17 and 18 can be employed tointroduce the heating light 71 into the ring-shaped quartz member 720.In FIGS. 17 and 18, the same numerals are given to parts correspondingto those shown in FIG. 14. In FIGS. 17 and 18, a small-sized lightsource 70 is arranged adjacent to the bottom portion of the ring-shapedquartz member 720 and the heating light 71 is directly irradiated to thering-shaped quartz member 720 through the window 3 b for airtightsealing. In this case, a light source having an outside of, e.g., about50 W may be employed as the small-sized light source 70. For example, 8to 12 light sources 70 may be circumferentially arranged at regularintervals

In the above structure, it is preferable that a concave cylindrical lensis employed as the window 3 b and, thus, the heating light 71 iscircumferentially enlarged. Further, it is preferable to provide areflection unit at a bottom portion except for the window 3 b forintroduce the heating light 71, to suppress the heating light 71 fromleaking to the outside. The reflection unit may be embodied byprocessing a bottom portion of the ring-shaped quartz member 72 to havea prism shape as shown in FIG. 19 for example, coating the bottomportion with a reflection film, or performing a fire-polish process orthe like on the bottom portion.

For another example, a structure shown in FIG. 20 can be employed tointroduce the heating light 71 into the ring-shaped quartz member 720.Specifically, the heating light 71 is introduced from the light source70 having, e.g., LEDs into the optical fibers 75 while leading ends ofthe optical fibers 75 are arranged below the ring-shaped quartz member720, to introduce the heating light 71 from the optical fibers 75 intothe lower portion of the quartz member 72 through the window 3 b.

As shown in FIG. 21, the diffusion unit 72 d having a diffractiongrating may be provided in the light introducing part 72 a of thering-shaped quartz member 720 to dividedly disperse the heating light 71introduced in the ring-shaped quartz member 720 into a −1^(st), a0^(th), a +1^(st) order light, and the like. In this case, such adispersion state (diffraction angle) may be changed by adjusting thewavelength of the heating light 71 irradiated from the light source 70,thereby more uniformly dispersing the light 71 and uniformly heating theannual member 16.

Instead of providing the reflection film 72 c in the ring-shaped quartzmember 720, the inner surface, the outer surface, and the bottom surfaceof the ring-shaped quartz member 720 may be polished into a mirrorsurface or subjected to the fire-polish process or the like. As shown inFIGS. 22 and 23, the heating light 71 may be introduced into thering-shaped quartz member 720 under an incident condition (incidentangle) that the heating light 71 is totally reflected on the innersurface of the ring-shaped quartz member 720.

Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 24, the beam splitters 72 e may beprovided inside the ring-shaped quartz member 720 to disperse little bylittle the circumferentially introduced heating light 71 such that thedispersed heating light 71 is directed upwardly (toward the annularmember 16). Further alternatively, as shown in FIG. 25, the heatinglight 71 irradiated from the light source 70 may be dispersed by theoptical fibers 75 to be introduced through a plurality of locations intothe ring-shaped quartz member 720.

In the present embodiment, the heating light 71 dispersed from thering-shaped quartz member 720 is supplied to the annular member 16.However, the heating light 71 may be propagated and totally reflectedinside the annular member 16 as shown in FIGS. 26A to 27C for example.In this case, it is necessary to use a light having a wavelength that islonger than the fundamental absorption edge of silicon (a wavelengthgreater than 1050 nm) as the heating light 71 such that the heatinglight 71 is propagated inside the annular member 16.

Further, in this case, it is preferable to provide the reflection uniton a bottom surface of the annular member 16 or a top surface of thering-shaped quartz member 720, except for the introduction portion ofthe heating light 71. As described above, the reflection unit can beembodied by providing a reflection film on the surface or performing thefire-polish process on the surface.

As shown in FIGS. 26A to 26C, the ring-shaped prism 76 made of a siliconmaterial is provided between the ring-shaped quartz member 720 and theannular member 16. FIG. 26A is a cross sectional view showing main partsof the plasma etching apparatus. FIG. 26B is a cross sectional viewshowing the prism 76. FIG. 26C is a plan view showing the annular member16 and the prism 76.

As shown in FIG. 26B, an angle between an incident surface and ahorizontal surface of the prism 76 is greater than 25.4° and, thus, theheating light 71 introduced in the annular member 16 through the prism76 is propagated while being totally reflected inside the annular member16 in a circumferential direction thereof. The angle of 25.4° isobtained by setting refractive indexes of silicon and quartz as 3.5 and1.5, respectively.

As shown in FIGS. 27A to 27C, the rectangular prism 77 made of a siliconmaterial is provided between the ring-shaped quartz member 720 and theannular member 16. FIG. 27A is a cross sectional view showing main partsof the plasma etching apparatus. FIG. 27B is a cross sectional viewshowing the prism 77 taken along a dotted line A-A shown in FIG. 27A.FIG. 27C is a plan view showing the annular member 16 and the prism 77.

By the prism 77, the heating light 71 is refracted in a circumferentialdirection of the annular member 16. In the cross section of the prism 77taken along the dotted line A-A, an angle between an incident surfaceand a horizontal surface thereof is greater than 25.4°. Accordingly, theheating light 71 introduced in the annular member 16 through the prism77 is propagated while being totally reflected in the circumferentialdirection inside the annular member 16. As described above, the angle of25.4° is obtained by setting refractive indexes of silicon and quartz as3.5 and 1.5, respectively.

Instead of providing the prism 76 or 77, a process for changing anoptical path may be performed on the surface of at least one of thering-shaped quartz member 720 and the annular member 16 to serve as aprism.

A graph shown in FIG. 28 shows a relationship between a supplied energyand a normal temperature of the annular member 16 (having an outerdiameter of 360 mm and an inner diameter of 340 mm), where the verticalaxis indicates the normal temperature of the annular member 16 and thehorizontal axis indicates the supplied energy. As shown in FIG. 28,energies of 125 W, 266 W, and 500 W are required to be supplied to theannular member 16 to heat it such that the temperatures thereof reach200° C., 300° C., and 400° C., respectively.

Moreover, a graph shown in FIG. 29 shows a relationship between asupplied energy and a temperature-increasing rate of the annular member16 (having an outer diameter of 360 mm and an inner diameter of 340 mm)when the thickness of the annular member 16 is 1.5, 2.0, 3.4, and 4.0mm, where the vertical axis indicates the temperature-increasing rate ofthe annular member 16 and the horizontal axis indicates the suppliedenergy. As shown in FIG. 29, the temperature-increasing rate of theannular member 16 is varied depending on the thickness of the annularmember 16. In case the annular member 16 has the thickness of 3.4 mm,the temperature-increasing rate thereof becomes about 1° C./sec when thesupplied energy is 250 W.

FIGS. 30 and 31 show temperature-increasing curves of the annular member16, where the vertical axis indicates a temperature (° C.) and ahorizontal axis indicates a time (second). Specifically, FIGS. 30 and 31show the temperature-increasing curves when the thicknesses of annularmember 16 are 1.5 mm and 3.4 mm, respectively. In the case of theannular member 16 having the thickness of 3.4 mm, the temperaturethereof reaches about 300° C. after about 10 minutes by a light of 266 Was shown in FIG. 31.

FIG. 32 shows temperature-increasing curves of the annular member 16having the outer diameter of 360 mm and the inner diameter of 340 mmwhen the annular member 16 is heated in the atmosphere, where thevertical axis indicates a temperature (C) and a horizontal axisindicates a time (minute). Specifically, the dotted-line curve shown inFIG. 31 shows the case where the reflection unit is provided at thebottom portion of the annular member 16 and a light of 560 W isemployed, and the solid-line curve shows the case where there is noreflection unit and the light of 560 W is employed. As shown in FIG. 32,it is possible to improve the temperature-increasing rate and increasethe normal temperature by providing the reflection unit.

As described above, in accordance with the present embodiment, it ispossible to heat the annular member 16 provided at the peripheralportion of the focus ring 15 to make the temperature of the annularmember 16 equal to or higher than 200° C. while cooling the focus ring15 to make the temperature of the focus ring 15 lower than 200° C.Accordingly, a processing profile deterioration at a peripheral portionof the semiconductor wafer W can be prevented. As a result, it ispossible to suppress the increase in etching rate of a photoresist atthe peripheral portion of the semiconductor wafer W, thereby improvingthe in-plane uniformity of the plasma etching process.

Especially, from the time when the plasma etching apparatus 1 performsno process to the time when the apparatus 1 starts to perform the plasmaetching process on the semiconductor wafer W, the annular member 16 isnot exposed to a plasma. Accordingly, the temperature of the annularmember 16 is kept at about a room temperature. In this state, when theplasma etching process is started while cooling the focus ring 15, dueto the low temperature of the annular member 16, the etching rate of thephotoresist at the peripheral portion of the semiconductor wafer W isincreased and the selectivity is lowered, thereby deteriorating thein-plane uniformity of the plasma etching process.

On the other hand, since the annular member 16 is heated in advance suchthat the temperature thereof is made to be equal to or higher than 200°C. in the present embodiment, it is possible to suppress the increase inetching rate of the photoresist at the peripheral portion of thesemiconductor wafer W immediately after the plasma etching process isstarted, thereby improving the in-plane uniformity of the plasma etchingprocess.

Further, since the temperature of the annular member during the plasmaetching is changed depending on the plasma etching time, it is possibleto control the temperature of the annular member 16 to be uniform byirradiating the heating light 71 to heat the annular member 16 whilemeasuring the temperature of the annular member 16 with a thermometer.In this case, the temperature of the annular member 16 may be measuredby the temperature measuring technique using a low coherenceinterferometer, and the light irradiated from the light source 70 may bealso used for temperature measurement.

Moreover, the heating light 71 is irradiated from the light source 70provided outerside of the vacuum processing chamber 2 to the annularmember 16 through the ring-shaped quartz member 720 provided below theannular member 16. Accordingly, it is possible to make simpler thestructure of the heating mechanism and suppress the increase of themanufacturing cost as compared with the case of requiring an inductiveheating unit inside the annular member 16 and an induction coil insidethe vacuum processing chamber, for example.

In each of the aforementioned embodiments, a reflection film may beprovided on the inner surface, the outer surface, and the bottom surfaceof the ring-shaped quartz member 72 or 720, or the inner surface, theouter surface, and the bottom surface thereof may be polished into amirror surface or subjected to the fire-polish process or the like tosuppress the heating light 71 introduced in the ring-shaped quartzmember 72 or 720 from leaking to the outside.

Alternatively, a reflection mirror 110, for example, may providedadjacent to the ring-shaped quartz member 72 or 720 at outside thereofas shown in FIG. 33 instead of processing the surface of the ring-shapedquartz member 72 or 720 as described above.

In this case, it is more efficient to provide the reflection mirror 110at the bottom surface of the ring-shaped quartz member 72 or 720 thanthe inner or the outer surface thereof. Accordingly, the reflectionmirror 110 may be provided at the bottom surface of the ring-shapedquartz member 72 or 720 as shown in FIG. 33. In an example shown in FIG.33, the reflection mirror 110 has a ring shape following the shape ofthe bottom surface of the ring-shaped quartz member 72 or 720. Further,one or more openings through which the heating light 71 is introducedare formed at a portion of the reflection mirror 110. The referencenumeral 112 denotes a wall of the vacuum processing chamber in FIG. 33.

FIG. 34 is a graph showing the difference of the temperature of thefocus ring 15 between the cases where the reflection is performed on theside of the bottom surface of the ring-shaped quartz member 72 or 720 bythe reflection mirror 110 and no reflection is performed by coating ablack body the bottom surface of the ring-shaped quartz member 72 or720, where the vertical axis indicates a temperature (° C.) and ahorizontal axis a time (minute). In FIG. 34, the solid-line curve showsthe temperature of the focus ring 15 in a first case where thereflection mirror 110 is provided and electric current supplied to thelight source 70 is 50A; the dotted-line curve shows the temperature ofthe focus ring 15 in a second case where the reflection mirror 110 isprovided and electric current supplied to the light source 70 is 45A;and the dashed dotted-line curve shows the temperature of the focus ring15 in a third case where the black body is coated and electric currentsupplied to the light source 70 is 50A.

As shown in FIG. 34, the temperature of the focus ring in the secondcase where the reflection mirror 110 is provided and the current of 45Ais supplied to the light source 70 is substantially same as that in thethird case where no reflection mirror 110 is provided and the current of50A is supplied to the light source 70. Moreover, the temperature of thefocus ring 15 in the first case where the reflection mirror 110 isprovided and the current of 50A is supplied to the light source 70 ishigher, by 30° C. or more, than that in the third case where noreflection mirror 110 is provided and the current of 50A is supplied tothe light source 70.

As such, if the reflection mirror 110 is provided adjacent to the bottomsurface of the ring-shaped quartz member 72 or 720, it is possible toefficiently heat the focus ring 15 (or the annular member 16). Thereflection mirror 110 may be formed by polishing a surface of a metal,e.g., aluminum (Al) or gold (Au) or a metal-coating surface into amirror surface.

To improve a heating efficiency of the focus ring (or the annular member16), a coating material for improving an absorbing effect by suppressingthe reflection of the heating light 71 may be coated on the bottomsurface of the focus ring 15 (or the annular member 16). In this case, abottom anti-reflection coating film (e.g., a dielectric multi-layerfilm) for preventing the reflection of a light having the samewavelength as the heating light 71 may be employed.

FIG. 35 shows a structure capable of more efficiently cooling the focusring 15 when the focus ring 15 is cooled and the annular member (coverring) 16 provided at the peripheral portion of the focus ring 15 isheated. In an example shown in FIG. 35, there is provided an attractingunit 120 which attracts the focus ring 15 on the susceptor 5 by using aJohnson-Rahbek force. The attracting unit 120 includes an electrode 121provided near the focus ring 15; a DC power supply 122 for supplying aDC voltage to the electrode 121; and a switch for switching on and offthe DC voltage supplied from the DC power supply 122. The referencenumeral 125 denotes a quartz member provided at a peripheral side of theannular member 16 and the ring-shaped quartz member 720 in FIG. 35.

As described above, it is possible to make the temperature of the focusring 15 substantially same as that of the susceptor 5 by providing theattracting unit 120 which attracts the focus ring 15 by using theJohnson-Rahbek force to bring the focus ring 15 into close-contact withthe susceptor 5. The temperature of the susceptor 5 is regularlycontrolled by a coolant circulating through the coolant chamber 7.Accordingly, it is possible to regularly control the temperature of thefocus ring 15 at a high precision by providing the attracting unit 120.

The attracting unit 120 may use a Coulomb force instead of theJohnson-Rahbek force. The attracting unit 120 using the Coulomb forcehas a weaker attractive force than that of the attracting unit 120 usingthe Johnson-Rahbek force. For that reason, it is preferable to provide agas supply unit 130 which supplies a heat transfer medium (e.g., He gas)for enhancing a heat conductivity between the susceptor 5 and a backsideof the focus ring 15 as shown in FIG. 36, for example. The gas supplyunit 130 includes a gas supply source 131; a gas flow path 132 throughwhich the He gas or the like is introduced into a space between thesusceptor 5 and the backside of the focus ring 15; and an on-off valve133 for turning on and off the gas flow path 132.

The above-mentioned gas supply unit 130 may have an alternativestructure shown in FIG. 37. Specifically, He gas or the like may besplit from a cooling unit of the semiconductor wafer W which supplies itto a space between the susceptor 5 and a backside of the semiconductorwafer W through the gas channel 14 such that the split He gas issupplied to the space between the susceptor 5 and the backside of thefocus ring 15. The reference numeral 150 denotes an on-off valve forturning on and off a gas supply path between the susceptor 5 and thebackside of the semiconductor wafer W in FIG. 37.

In addition to the gas supply unit 130, the attracting unit 120 may alsobe have an alternative structure shown in FIG. 38 by commonly using theDC power supply 13 of the electrostatic chuck 11 to supply a DC powertherefrom to the electrode 121. In this case, since the focus ring 15 isfixed until being replaced due to its erosion or the like, it ispreferable to provide the switch 123 for switching on and off thevoltage supplied to the electrode 121, to thereby switch on and off thevoltage supplied from the DC power supply 13 independently from theelectrostatic chuck 11. The reference numeral 151 denotes a switch forswitching on and off the DC voltage supplied to the electrode 12 of theelectrostatic chuck 11 in FIG. 38.

In accordance with each of the embodiments, the focus ring 15 or theannular member 16 is in a heat-insulating vacuum state under a highvacuum atmosphere when the focus ring 15 provided on the ring-shapedquartz member is heated by supplying the heating light 71 theretothrough the ring-shaped quartz member 72, or when the annular member 16provided on the ring-shaped quartz member 720 is heated by supplying theheating light 71 thereto through the ring-shaped quartz member 720.Accordingly, the heat accumulated in the focus ring 15 or the annularmember 16 is radiated and discharged to the outside.

In this case, since the ring-shaped quartz member 72 or 720 is arrangedby being in contact with the focus ring 15 or the annular member 16, itbecomes easier for the ring-shaped quartz member 72 or 720 to be heatedby a heat radiated from the focus ring 15 or the annular member 16.Further, since the ring-shaped quartz members 72 and 720 are made of aninsulating material, e.g., quartz, and in a heat-insulating vacuum stateunder a high vacuum atmosphere, no heat may be discharged to anywhereand, thus, the heat is kept in the ring-shaped quartz member 72 or 720.

If the temperature of the ring-shaped quartz member 72 or 720 becomeshigh due to the heat kept in the ring-shaped quartz member 72 or 720 asdescribed above, this may affect a heating property of the focus ring 15or the annular member 16. Accordingly, even though the heating light 71is irradiated to the focus ring 15 or the annular member 16 under thesame conditions, it becomes difficult to control the temperature thereofto a predetermined level.

For that reason, it is preferable to provide a mechanism for improvingthe heat transfer between the susceptor 5 and the ring-shaped quartzmember 72 or 720. FIG. 39 shows an example of such a mechanism forimproving the heat transfer. As shown in FIG. 39, a plurality of O-rings141 is arranged, e.g., between the susceptor 5 and the ring-shapedquartz member 72, and airtightly closed spaces 142 are formed betweenthe o-rings 141. The heat transfer gas, e.g., the He gas, is suppliedfrom the gas supply source 131 to the spaces 142. In the abovestructure, the heat transferred from the focus ring 15 to thering-shaped quartz member 72 is discharged to the susceptor 5 throughthe heat transfer gas, thereby preventing the undesired increase in thetemperature of the ring-shaped quartz member 72.

Similarly, the same spaces 142 may be formed between the susceptor 5 andthe ring-shaped quartz member 720 of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 35 to38 and the heat transfer gas may be supplied to the spaces 142. In thiscase, the heat transferred from the annular member 16 to the ring-shapedquartz member 720 is discharged to the susceptor 5 through the heattransfer gas, thereby preventing the undesired increase in thetemperature of the ring-shaped quartz member 720.

FIGS. 40A and 40B partially show main parts of a plasma etchingapparatus in accordance with still another embodiment in which aplurality of cylindrical quartz member 722 buried in a ring-shapedinsulating member 721 made of a ceramic or the like is employed as anoptical path instead of the ring-shaped quartz member 72 or 720.Specifically, FIG. 40A is a top view partially showing the ring-shapedinsulating member 721 and the cylindrical quartz member 722, and FIG.40B is a cross sectional view showing the ring-shaped insulating member721 and the cylindrical quartz member 722. The reference numeral 723denotes an inner peripheral ring-shaped insulating member made of aceramic or the like in FIGS. 40A and 40B.

In this embodiment, the light source 70 having LEDs is provided beloweach of the cylindrical quartz members 722 and the heating light 71 issupplied from the light source to the focus ring 15 through thecorresponding quartz member 722. Although FIGS. 40A and 40B show thestructure in the case where the focus ring 15 is heated, the similarstructure may be provided to heat the annular member 16. Instead of thecylindrical quartz members 722, there may be employed cylindricalmembers made of a different material, e.g., fused quartz, sapphire,transparent yttria, or an optical material formed of one of Ge, ZnSe,ZnS, GaAs, CaF₂, BaF₂, MgF₂, LiF, KBr, KCl, NaCl, and MgO.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments andvarious modifications may be made. For example, the plasma etchingapparatus may be of a type in which single or dual high frequency powersare supplied to only the lower electrode or a type which uses amicrowave plasma or an inductively coupled plasma without being limitedto the parallel plate type in which high frequency powers arerespectively supplied to the upper and the lower electrode as shown inFIGS. 1 and 13.

DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

-   1 Plasma etching apparatus-   2 Vacuum processing chamber-   5 Susceptor-   15 Focus ring-   70 Light source-   71 Heating light-   72 Ring-shaped quartz member-   W Semiconductor wafer

1. A method of heating a focus ring in a plasma etching apparatusincluding a vacuum processing chamber; a mounting table for mounting asubstrate thereon, the mounting table being provided in the vacuumprocessing chamber; a gas supply unit for supplying a processing gas tothe vacuum processing chamber; and the focus ring provided to surround aperiphery of the substrate, the method comprising: heating the focusring by irradiating a heating light from a light source provided outsidethe vacuum processing chamber to the focus ring through an insulatingmember provided below the focus ring.
 2. The method of claim 1, whereinthe insulating member has a ring, a fan or a cylindrical shape.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the light source is a laser beam source or alight emitting diode (LED) light source.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein the insulating member is made of a material allowing the heatinglight to pass therethrough so that the heating light is transmitted tothe focus ring through the insulating member.
 5. The method of claim 4,wherein the insulating member is made of quartz, fused quartz, sapphire,transparent yttria, or an optical material formed of one of Ge, ZnSe,ZnS, GaAs, CaF₂, BaF₂, MgF₂, LiF, KBr, KCl, NaCl, and MgO.
 6. The methodof claim 4, wherein a reflection film is formed on a surface of theinsulating member to reflect the heating light traveling in theinsulating member.
 7. The method of claim 4, wherein a surface of theinsulating member is made transparent to allow the heating lighttraveling in the insulating member to be easily reflected.
 8. The methodof claim 4, wherein a surface of the insulating member is subjected to afire-polish process.
 9. The method of claim 4, wherein the heating lightis allowed to be introduced in the insulating member under an incidentcondition that the heating light is totally reflected on a surface ofthe insulating member.
 10. The method of claim 4, wherein an opticalsplitter is provided in the insulating member to split the heating lightinto a plurality of lights and the focus ring is heated by the splitlights.
 11. The method of claim 4, wherein the heating light isintroduced at a plurality of locations into the insulating member. 12.The method of claim 4, wherein a prism is provided between theinsulating member and the focus ring or a surface of at least one of theinsulating member and the focus ring is subjected to a process forchanging an optical path to serve as a prism; and the heating light isallowed to be introduced through the prism in the focus ring under anincident condition that the heating light is totally reflected on thesurface of the focus ring.
 13. The method of claim 4, wherein areflection mirror is provided adjacent to a bottom surface of theinsulating member, the reflection mirror having a reflection surfacepositioned on the side of the insulating member.
 14. The method of claim1, wherein an airtightly closed space is formed between the insulatingmember and the mounting table, and a gas supply unit is provided tosupply a heat transfer gas to the space.
 15. A plasma etching apparatuscomprising a vacuum processing chamber; a mounting table for mounting asubstrate thereon, the mounting table being provided in the vacuumprocessing chamber; a gas supply unit for supplying a processing gas tothe vacuum processing chamber; a focus ring provided to surround aperiphery of the substrate; a light source provided outside the vacuumprocessing chamber to irradiate a heating light for heating the focusring; and an insulating member provided below the focus ring, whereinthe focus ring is heated by the heating light transmitted from the lightsource to the focus ring through the insulating member.
 16. Theapparatus of claim 15, wherein the insulating member has a ring, a fanor a cylindrical shape.
 17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the lightsource is a laser beam source or a light emitting diode (LED) lightsource.
 18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the insulating member ismade of a material allowing the heating light to pass therethrough sothat the heating light is transmitted to the focus ring through theinsulating member.
 19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the insulatingmember is made of quartz, fused quartz, sapphire, transparent yttria, oran optical material formed of one of Ge, ZnSe, ZnS, GaAs, CaF₂, BaF₂,MgF₂, LiF, KBr, KCl, NaCl, and MgO.
 20. The apparatus of claim 18,further comprising a reflection film formed on a surface of theinsulating member to reflect the heating light traveling in theinsulating member.
 21. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein a surface ofthe insulating member is made transparent to allow the heating lighttraveling in the insulating member to be easily reflected.
 22. Theapparatus of claim 18, wherein a surface of the insulating member issubjected to a fire-polish process.
 23. The apparatus of claim 18,wherein the heating light is allowed to be introduced in the insulatingmember under an incident condition that the heating light is totallyreflected on a surface of the insulating member.
 24. The apparatus ofclaim 18, wherein an optical splitter is provided in the insulatingmember to split the heating light into a plurality of lights, and thefocus ring is heated by the split lights.
 25. The apparatus of claim 18,wherein the heating light is introduced at a plurality of locations intothe insulating member.
 26. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein a prism isprovided between the insulating member and the focus ring or a surfaceof at least one of the insulating member and the focus ring is subjectedto a process for changing an optical path to serve as a prism; and theheating light is allowed to be introduced through the prism in the focusring under an incident condition that the heating light is totallyreflected on the surface of the focus ring by the prism.
 27. Theapparatus of claim 18, wherein a reflection mirror is provided adjacentto a bottom surface of the insulating member, the reflection mirrorhaving a reflection surface on the side of the insulating member. 28.The apparatus of claim 15, wherein an airtightly closed space is formedbetween the insulating member and the mounting table, and a gas supplyunit is provided to supply a heat transfer gas to the space.
 29. Aplasma etching apparatus comprising a vacuum processing chamber; amounting table for mounting a substrate thereon, the mounting tablebeing provided in the vacuum processing chamber; a gas supply unit forsupplying a processing gas to the vacuum processing chamber; a unit forconverting the processing gas to a plasma; a focus ring provided tosurround a periphery of the substrate; an annular member provided tosurround a periphery of the focus ring; a cooling unit for cooling thefocus ring; and a heating mechanism for heating the annular member byirradiating a heating light from a light source thereto.
 30. Theapparatus of claim 29, wherein the cooling unit for cooling the focusring also serves to cool the substrate mounted on the mounting table.31. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the light source is a laser beamsource or a light emitting diode (LED) light source.
 32. The apparatusof claim 29, further comprising: an insulating member provided below theannular member, the insulating member having a ring, a fan or acylindrical shape and being made of a material allowing the heatinglight irradiated from the light source to pass therethrough, wherein theinsulating member allows the heating light to be transmitted to thefocus ring therethrough.
 33. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein theinsulating member is made of quartz, fused quartz, sapphire, transparentyttria, or an optical material formed of one of Ge, ZnSe, ZnS, GaAs,CaF₂, BaF₂, MgF₂, LiF, KBr, KCl, NaCl, and MgO.
 34. The apparatus ofclaim 32, further comprising: a reflection unit provided on a bottomsurface of the insulating member to reflect the heating light passingthrough the insulating member.
 35. The apparatus of claim 34, whereinthe reflection unit is formed by using a coating film or by processing asurface of the insulating member.
 36. The apparatus of claim 32, whereina reflection mirror is provided adjacent to a bottom surface of theinsulating member, the reflection mirror having a reflection surface onthe side of the insulating member.
 37. The apparatus of claim 32,wherein an optical splitter is provided in the insulating member tosplit the heating light into a plurality of lights, and the annularmember is heated by the split lights.
 38. The apparatus of claim 32,wherein the heating light is introduced at a plurality of locations intothe insulating member.
 39. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein theheating light is introduced from the light source into the insulatingmember at a predetermined incidence angle.
 40. The apparatus of claim32, wherein a prism is provided between the insulating member and theannular member or a surface of at least one of the insulating member andthe annular member is subjected to a process for changing an opticalpath to serve as a prism; and the heating light is allowed to beintroduced through the prism in the annular member under an incidentcondition that the heating light is totally reflected on the surface ofthe annular member by the prism.
 41. The apparatus of claim 32, whereinan airtightly closed space is formed between the insulating member andthe mounting table, and a gas supply unit is provided to supply a heattransfer gas to the space.
 42. The apparatus of claim 29, furthercomprising: an attracting unit for electrostatically attracting thefocus ring on the mounting table.
 43. A method of performing a plasmaetching on a substrate by using a plasma etching apparatus including avacuum processing chamber; a mounting table for mounting the substratethereon, the mounting table being provided in the vacuum processingchamber; a gas supply unit for supplying a processing gas to the vacuumprocessing chamber; a unit for converting the processing gas to aplasma; a focus ring provided to surround a periphery of the substrate;and an annular member provided to surround a periphery of the focusring, the method comprising: providing a heating mechanism for heatingthe annular member by irradiating a heating light from a light sourcethereto; and performing the plasma etching on the substrate whileheating the annular member by the heating mechanism and cooling thefocus ring.
 44. The method of claim 43, wherein an attracting unit isarranged to electrostatically attract the focus ring on the mountingtable, and the focus ring is electrostatically attracted on the mountingtable.